Inner Work

For the week of April 30, 2007

Participating in Purpose

Life presents us with so many competing demands that any thought, much less action, toward a larger purpose gets lost in the noise. Our days are consumed by chores: taking care of our body, our family, our job, and our possessions. Remaining spare time often dissipates into our favored distractions. We talk to people without really connecting. With the notable exception of the love we give our family, too much of what we do has little or no meaning.

The meaning of any act, no matter how small or routine, derives from its purpose. But we tend to lose touch with the purpose of what we do. In our job, we fall into the routine of details, not relating to how the job serves society, as all jobs do. For the rest, we respond to the needs of the moment or the day, letting slip the opportunities of our lifetime and beyond.

The spiritual path aligns us with the Great Purpose of the universe. Although we remain only dimly aware of that Purpose, our faith tells us that when we practice presence, prayer, and kindness, and when we actively seek wisdom, we simultaneously serve both our own purpose and the Great Purpose. Though building a soul takes place in our hidden interior, it is not a private matter, but serves the Greatness.

The real truth of purpose goes even further. One could say that God is Purpose, the profound mountain of Purpose behind the universe, the Purpose that creates and sustains the universe and us. By our spiritual practice, by our creative work, by our acts of love, kindness, peace, and responsibility, we participate directly in that Great Purpose, in the Divine.

Standing in line at the grocery checkout stand, am I connected with my purposes: to feed myself and my family, to be kind to the people around me, to be present? To live in intention connects us with the Great Intention from which all true meaning derives, including the meaning of each moment of our life. Participating in purpose brings you the confidence that what you do matters, that your inner work matters beyond yourself. Participating in purpose brings you the real happiness of a meaningful life.

For this week, live in intention, participate in Purpose.

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